Ovarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from the ovary. Most (more than 90%) ovarian cancers are classified as “epithelial” and are believed to arise from the surface (epithelium) of the ovary. However, some evidence suggests that the fallopian tube could also be the source of some ovarian cancers. Since the ovaries and tubes are closely related to each other, it is thought that these fallopian cancer cells can mimic ovarian cancer. Other types may arise from the egg cells (germ cell tumor) or supporting cells. Ovarian cancers are included in the category gynecologic cancer.
Treatment of ovarian cancer usually involves chemotherapy and surgery, and sometimes radiotherapy. Surgical treatment may be sufficient for malignant tumors that are well-differentiated and confined to the ovary. Addition of chemotherapy may be required for more aggressive tumors that are confined to the ovary. For patients with advanced disease a combination of surgical reduction with a combination chemotherapy regimen is standard.
For patients with stage IIIC epithelial ovarian adenocarcinomas who have undergone successful optimal debulking, a recent clinical trial demonstrated that median survival time is significantly longer for patient receiving intraperitoneal (IP) chemotherapy. Patients in this clinical trial reported less compliance with IP chemotherapy and fewer than half of the patients received all six cycles of IP chemotherapy. Despite this high “drop-out” rate, the group as a whole (including the patients that didn't complete IP chemotherapy treatment) survived longer on average than patients who received intravenous chemotherapy alone. Although IP chemotherapy has been recommended as a standard of care for the first-line treatment of ovarian cancer, the basis for this recommendation has been challenged, and it has not yet become standard treatment for stage III or IV ovarian cancer.
Colon cancer is one of the most common types of cancer. Peritoneal spread is the terminal stage in colon cancer. The peritoneal carcinomatosis is the most common cause of malignant ascites; the production and leakage of fluid from the malignant cells causes exudation of extracellular fluid into peritoneal cavity. Peritoneal carcinomatosis is one of the major causes of mortality in colon cancer patients.
The combination of nanotechnology and conventional chemotherapy has yielded a new therapeutic strategy that is intended to bring critical advances in the fight against cancer. Nanoparticles (NPs), such as liposomes and albumin, currently employed in clinical practice, aim to improve the solubility and efficacy while decreasing the adverse side effects. The enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect is becoming the gold standard for the development of nanomedicine.